Expresso Bongo

• Original London Production (1958)
  London, England
• Film Version (1959)

Click on the title for info on the song.

Original score

• Don't You Sell Me Down the River
• Expresso Party
  • aka Expresso Bongo [no note]
• Nausea
• Spoil the Child
• Seriously
• I Never Had It So Good
• The Shrine on the Second Floor
• The Dip is Dipping
• He's Got Something for the Public
  • aka He's Got [no note]
• I Am
  • aka I Think I Am [no note]
• Nothing is for Nothing
• There's Nothing Wrong with British Youth Today
• We Bought It
• Time
• Majorca
• The Gravy Train

Added to film version

• Love
• A Voice in the Wilderness
• Loch Lomond
• You Can Look at the Goods but Don't Touch
• Bongo Blues

From an original story by Wolf Mankowitz

Johnnie is a slimy, small-time music promoter and talent scout who notices teenage girls going crazy for the singing and bongo playing of talentless and seemingly idiotic Herbert Rudge. Johnnie rechristens Rudge as "Bongo Herbert" and signs him to a contract that gives Johnnie a 50% share of the profits. With Johnnie's help, Bongo rockets to stardom. Bongo's success attracts a host of sleazy music industry types intent on exploiting him. Johnny quickly finds himself outclassed in the sleaze department as Bongo turns out to be the slipperiest slime of them all.